Afuri 水酛

Six generations of brewing at the foot of Mount Tanzawa-Oyama in Isehara, Kanagawa, have shaped Kikkawa Jozo into one of the region's most distinctive breweries. Blessed by the Oyama Afuri Shrine, which enshrines the Shinto deity of sake brewing, the brewery draws well water at 150 to 160 parts per million hardness, exceptionally mineral-rich by Japanese standards and well suited to mizumoto, the ancient lactic acid starter preparation. The high mineral content drives vigorous fermentation in ways soft water cannot, producing a sake of firm acidity, layered umami, and a mineral structure that builds and deepens with each sip.